Josh McDaniels' Firing as Raiders HC Trolled by Fans amid Davante Adams' Struggles

Twenty-four hours after a 26-14 loss to the Detroit Lions that saw the offense put up a season-low 157 yards, Josh McDaniels' tenure as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders came to an end.

Raiders owner Mark Davis announced on Tuesday night that McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler have been fired. Former linebacker Antonio Pierce, was the linebackers coach on McDaniels' staff, will take over as interim head coach.

The decision to fire McDaniels comes amid multiple instances of star wide receiver Davante Adams expressing his frustration with the offense this season. It culminated with him slamming his helmet in frustration on the sideline late in the fourth quarter against the Lions after he was wide open for a likely touchdown, but Jimmy Garoppolo overthrew him.

The response from fans and analysts to McDaniels' firing was one of surprise, mostly because it came late on a Tuesday when the Raiders are playing on a short week.

McDaniels' tenure with the Raiders has been nothing short of a disaster. He took over a team that was coming off a 10-7 season and a playoff berth in 2021.

One hallmark of the McDaniels-Ziegler era in Vegas was bringing in a bunch of players who used to be with the New England Patriots when they worked for the team. Chandler Jones, Jimmy Garoppolo, Jakobi Meyers, Brandon Bolden and Brian Hoyer all spent time with the Raiders.

Derek Carr signed an extension in April 2022 that gave him a full no-trade clause and the ability to control where he went if the Raiders decided to move on. He said he would've been willing to approve a trade, but the Raiders only let him talk to one team.

So instead of being able to recoup potential draft assets for a veteran quarterback in a potential trade, the Raiders had to release him when they made the choice to bring in a new signal-caller.

Josh Jacobs, who led the NFL in rushing yards and yards from scrimmage last season, spent all of training camp and the preseason in a contract holdout when the Raiders declined to give him a long-term deal.

In his second season with the Raiders after signing a five-year, $140 million deal, Adams has been held under five catches and 50 yards in three of the past four games. He openly criticized his role in the offense on Oct. 18.

The results on the field have been horrendous. Vegas ranks 30th in points per game (15.8), 31st in yards per game (268.3) and hasn't scored more than 21 points in any game this season, even though McDaniels comes from an offensive background.

There's no way to put a positive spin on anything McDaniels has done with the Raiders during his 21 months as head coach for the franchise.